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John Landon (CE)
For the 1968 movie astronaut character, see John Landon. John Landon is a neutral supporting character in Rise of the Planet of the Apes. Biography Landon ran the San Bruno Primate Shelter where Caesar was incarcerated following his attack on Douglas Hunsiker. After touring Will and Caroline around the premises, John was told by them that Caesar hadn't spent any time with other apes but John assured them that he would be skittish at first but would soon be integrated among the other apes, promising that the environment would be stimulating. Unknown to John, the apes inside the facility were treated cruelly by his son, Dodge, who worked as a guard there. On their first visit back to the shelter, Will suspected that Caesar was being mistreated and insisted that he would take Caesar home but John warned him that it wasn't happening without a court order. Sometime later, John was bribed by being handed an envelope full of cash in perhaps hundreds or thousands of dollars by Will Rodman and he permitted Will to take Caesar home. However, Caesar realized that if he left the facility the other apes would continue to be abused by Dodge, so he shut the cage door and refused to come home with Will. This prompted John to say that Caesar perhaps preferred to stay with the other apes at the facility rather than go home. Days later, John called it a day at work after having had enough of Dodge's bickering with Rodney, noticing that Caesar was rallying his newly evolved apes to his ideals, but John thought nothing of it and moved on. That same day, Caesar later led an escape from the shelter which resulted in Dodge's death. John watched the video from a CCTV recording showing the the death of his son. It is likely that John died from the Simian Flu like most of the other humans. Personality Although he was blind or ignorant to what was going on in the shelter, John was nicer than his son Dodge, also unlike his son, he has good manners; evident by allowing Will and Caroline to bring Caesar into the shelter without any restraints. However, John didn't like any nonsense as shown when breaking up conflicts Dodge started between Will and Rodney, leaving the shelter after feeling he got more peace at home there than in the ape shelter. Although he loved his son very much, this did not mean he gave his son special treatment, if John had found out that Dodge had mistreated the apes, he would not hesitate to fire his own son, however, he was unaware of his son's cruel and sadistic nature; until he watched the video from a CCTV recording showing the the death of his son. Behind the scenes * In the original filmed climax to the movie, John Landon followed Will into the forest with a shotgun and Will was shot by John in attempt to protect Caesar. Landon was then killed by the apes and Koba took Landon's gun. A test audience was shown this ending and reacted negatively, and so a different ending was shot on July 4 weekend, 2011, in Griffith Park, with a slightly more positive feel. * Danny DeVito, Michael Douglas, and Kevin Dunn were considered for the role of John. Notes *John Landon's name is taken from John Landon, one of George Taylor's astronaut crew-members in the original Planet of the Apes, played by Robert Gunner. * Listings on the Internet Movie Database (IMDb) prior to the movie's release gave this character's name as "Hank Landon". * There is another John in the movie who was the chief of the San Francisco Police Department (SFPD). Gallery Landon (CE).jpg|John watches Caesar examine the shelter. Thumbnail.jpg|"He'll be a little skittish at first, but we'll integrate him". References Rise of the Planet of the Apes Q & A Podcast - The Q&A with Jeff Goldsmith (December 13, 2011) Category:Humans Category:Male Characters Category:Neutral Characters Category:CE Category:CE Characters Category:Characters Category:Stubs Category:Unknown Status